HS BASEBALL NOTEBOOK: MCS soldiers on, keeps winning despite injuries

Published 6:13 pm, Thursday, April 16, 2015

Midland Christian's Nolen Hester puts the ball in play against Fort Worth Christian on Friday, March 20, 2015, at Christensen Stadium. James Durbin/Reporter-Telegram

Midland Christian's Nolen Hester puts the ball in play against Fort Worth Christian on Friday, March 20, 2015, at Christensen Stadium. James Durbin/Reporter-Telegram

Photo: James Durbin

HS BASEBALL NOTEBOOK: MCS soldiers on, keeps winning despite injuries

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Midland Christian baseball coach Mike Munguia said it’s been a “weird” year for the Mustangs.

“I’ve never had near this many injuries,” Munguia said. “It’s been weird.”

It seems like every week, the Mustangs (17-9, 9-1 in TAPPS 1-4A) have another ailing player. But one might not be able to from their recent play that MCS is beat up. The Mustangs have won eight straight games in district play and are now in a two-way tie for first place with Fort Worth Christian.

“We’re finding ways to win without playing our best,” Munguia said. “We’re just trying to get healthy and get through these next two weeks.”

MCS is in great position for another playoff berth. The Mustangs have five games remaining on their district schedule, with three of them at the friendly confines of Christensen Stadium.

In terms of the playoff chase, MCS needs to finish as one of the district’s top four teams in order to extend its season past April 24. But Munguia said he feels good about his team’s playoff chances, all things considered.

“We’re in good shape,” Munguia said. “Right now with where we’re at, we want to get into the playoffs, get healthy, play hard and have fun.”

The Mustangs will play Fort Worth Southwest Christian in a two game series in Fort Worth. The first game is set for 6 p.m. today and the second game is slated for 11 a.m. Saturday.

MHS FACES CRITICAL HOME CONTEST AGAINST ODESSA HIGH

The Midland High baseball team has a pretty important home game against Odessa High on Saturday.

“It’s a big one,” Russell said. “It’s the start of the second half (of the district 3-6A season) and they’ve (OHS) beat us once. They’re in front of us and have a one game lead on us. For tie-breaker purposes, we’ve got to at least have a split in the series with them. It’s not going to put us in (to the playoffs) or knock us out, but it’s going to have implications in both directions.”

The Bulldogs (16-5, 2-3 in District 3-6A) will be looking to exact revenge on the Bronchos (13-10, 3-2 in District 3-6A) after dropping the district opener to Odessa High, 5-4, in Odessa on March 28.

First pitch is set for noon Saturday at Zachery Field.

MHS has been an up-and-down team so far in district play. Scoring runs hasn’t been the problem for the Bulldogs, but rather mental discipline on defense has. Making the routine plays has often been a challenge for MHS and those miscues have usually allowed the opposition to make something seemingly out of nothing.

“We’ve got to quit being the poltergeist team,” Russell said. “We’re looking good for five innings, and then all of the sudden the poltergeist, and we’re the ‘Bad News Bears’ and we can’t make a play.”

The Bulldogs will need to shore things up defensively if it wants to stay in the playoff hunt for the next five games.

“We’ve just got to win some games,” Russell said. “I told the kids, ‘You’ve got five games that you’re guaranteed. That’s it. We’ve got two more games at Zachery. That’s it. We’ve got our work cut out us and fighting for our playoff lives right now.’”

LEE SEARCHING FOR AN END TO ITS SLUMP

Momentum is paramount to a successful high school baseball team.

Lee head coach Brian Roper knows this all too well.

“High school baseball is such a game of momentum and emotions,” Roper said. “I think much more so than maybe higher levels of baseball where kids can keep things in check and stay off that emotional roller coaster.”

But momentum is a luxury that the Rebels (9-9-1, 1-4 in District 3-6A) simply don’t have right now, as they currently on a four-game losing streak in district play. That slide has sent them down to fifth place in the standings, just one game ahead of last-place Permian, which Lee beat, 9-5, in the district opener.

Lee had a great opportunity to turn things around on Tuesday, when it played San Angelo Central on the road. The Rebels held a 4-2 lead in the third inning against the Bobcats’ ace Davis Martin. But Martin settled down and worked his way to a complete game with 10 strikeouts, as Central rallied for the 7-4 victory to remain undefeated in district play.

Roper has said that part of the reason his team has gone through this slump is that the Rebels’ bats have gone silent at times. And even when they have produced, they haven’t necessarily been hot at the right times in a game.

“Two-out hits,” Roper said. “It’s one thing we’ve really struggled with here for three years now. “That two-out hit to extended that inning and drive to somebody in with two outs, it has just avoided us. The game is won and lost with two outs.”

The Rebels will look to rebound when they take on Permian at 1 p.m. Saturday at McCanlies Field in Odessa.

GREENWOOD SLIPPING, BUT PLAYOFF HOPES STILL ALIVE

The Rangers are not off to the kind of start they wanted to be in the district standings.

After blowing a 7-5 lead and eventually losing to first-place Seminole, 12-8, at home on Tuesday, the Rangers (6-16, 2-4 in District 4-4A) have slipped to fifth place.

Still though, Greenwood is only two games behind second-place Andrews (7-16, 4-2 in District 4-4A) with four left to play.

Thanks to a road-heavy first half of the district schedule, the Rangers get three of their last four games at home. That could be a big factor in determining whether or not they’ll be in the playoffs.

Greenwood will take on Pecos at 7 p.m., today in Pecos, before traveling back home for its last three games.